U., city tally winter storm damage

Although this weekend's sunshine made some forget about the wrath caused by the winter weather, the University and City of Philadelphia are still trying to calculate the damage caused by the recent ice storms. University Maintenance and Utilities Manager Louis Visco said last night the damage caused by the storms may be worse than initially expected. "Until the thaw comes, it's hard to calculate," Visco said. "When the water starts flowing, that's when you can say, 'uh-oh, we've got more [damage] than we expected.'" Executive Vice President Janet Hale echoed Visco's sentiments, saying she will not be able to estimate how much the property damage will cost the University until she spoke with "someone in the insurance area." Visco said this winter's unusually icy temperatures and abundance of snowfall caused damage to pipes, walls, ceilings and walkways at the University. He added, though, that the University has not been damaged "structurally" by the weather. Visco said Physical Plant crews have already begun "cold-patching" -- filling up holes -- the bluestone covering Locust Walk. According to Visco, many potholes have formed in the "medical area" and on Hamilton Walk. These potholes and cold-patches have been caused by pedestrian and car traffic, as well as ice and snow, he added. Philadelphia Department of Streets and Highways Spokesperson Cynthia Williams said last week this winter's freezing temperatures have caused "a lot of potholes" on city streets. Although Williams was unable to say how much it will cost to repair the potholes, she said it will take "more money than we would normally spend to fix the potholes." "It's hard to get a handle on how much money it will take," she added. Visco said Physical Plant crews have "priorities," and have not begun working on "places that are isolated." The ice and snow storms forced the University to close for an unprecedented three days this semester. The city also shut down twice due to the weather.